Paralegal salary and cost of hiring in the US
A paralegal supports lawyers with research, document drafting, filing and case management, under the supervision of a licensed attorney.
BLS occupation 23-2011[1]; benefits share[2]. Checked 2026-10-16.
US salary range
| Range | 10th | Median | 90th | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $44,740 | $62,890 | $101,500 |
Salary by state
| State | Median | 90th percentile | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $131,650 | 6,400 | |
| Washington | $116,750 | 9,460 | |
| Colorado | $106,160 | 5,620 | |
| Massachusetts | $117,480 | 7,800 | |
| California | $119,580 | 47,130 | |
| Minnesota | $102,920 | 7,400 | |
| New Jersey | $99,900 | 12,010 | |
| Alaska | $99,320 | 570 | |
| New York | $115,720 | 34,220 | |
| Vermont | $87,390 | 660 | |
| Maryland | $108,380 | 6,460 | |
| Nevada | $82,160 | 3,620 | |
| Virginia | $100,550 | 10,250 | |
| Connecticut | $100,040 | 5,210 | |
| Illinois | $104,580 | 14,130 | |
| Pennsylvania | $96,080 | 14,670 | |
| Nebraska | $86,990 | 1,630 | |
| Utah | $100,510 | 3,250 | |
| Delaware | $99,390 | 2,480 | |
| Hawaii | $85,440 | 1,170 | |
| Maine | $80,550 | 1,210 | |
| Georgia (US state) | $101,210 | 14,160 | |
| Texas | $98,440 | 29,540 | |
| Michigan | $96,610 | 7,730 | |
| New Hampshire | $86,190 | 1,430 | |
| Arizona | $96,340 | 7,890 | |
| Oregon | $98,640 | 4,870 | |
| Missouri | $96,820 | 7,130 | |
| Florida | $83,410 | 40,950 | |
| Ohio | $94,660 | 9,270 | |
| Louisiana | $78,230 | 4,890 | |
| New Mexico | $80,490 | 1,740 | |
| Kentucky | $78,730 | 3,540 | |
| North Dakota | $78,430 | 730 | |
| West Virginia | $107,310 | 1,660 | |
| Tennessee | $83,100 | 6,080 | |
| Wisconsin | $86,210 | 4,780 | |
| South Dakota | $84,090 | 600 | |
| North Carolina | $84,410 | 13,650 | |
| Montana | $76,660 | 1,010 | |
| Indiana | $92,160 | 5,910 | |
| Rhode Island | $79,650 | 2,070 | |
| Kansas | $79,090 | 2,210 | |
| Iowa | $83,520 | 2,980 | |
| South Carolina | $75,640 | 7,420 | |
| Oklahoma | $82,060 | 3,110 | |
| Idaho | $75,420 | 2,030 | |
| Wyoming | $64,780 | 600 | |
| Arkansas | $81,700 | 1,610 | |
| Alabama | $77,100 | 5,700 | |
| Mississippi | $67,960 | 2,270 |
Top-paying metro areas
Areas with at least 500 people in the job.
| Metro area | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 2,030 | |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 6,310 | |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 7,630 | |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 12,990 | |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | 3,740 | |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 6,300 | |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 2,590 | |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 22,240 | |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 4,440 | |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 5,990 |
What the job involves
- Draft and proofread contracts, letters and pleadings
- Organise case files and deadlines
- Do legal and factual research
- Prepare filings and exhibits
- Communicate with clients and courts on routine matters
Tools
- Clio or MyCase
- Microsoft Word (advanced)
- Westlaw or LexisNexis
- DocuSign
How to test candidates
- A drafting task from a template
- A deadline calendar task
- Which legal system they trained in
Remote work
Remote paralegals abroad work under the firm's supervision and cannot give legal advice; most US firms use them for drafting and admin.
Local or remote
We place executive assistants, customer support and e-commerce staff today; for paralegals we answer within one business day whether we can help. Enter the monthly pay you have in mind to compare it with a local hire. The fee field shows our standard fee[3]; Deel's contractor plan is the default payroll tool[4].
Questions
What is the average paralegal salary in the US?
The BLS median was $62,890 a year in May 2025 and the mean $69,700.
Which state pays paralegals the most?
District of Columbia, with a median of $89,750 a year.
Sources
- BLS OEWS May 2025, 23-2011: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes232011.htm
- BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, private industry, June 2026: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm
- Silkstaff pricing: https://silkstaff.com/#pricing
- Deel pricing, contractor management: https://www.deel.com/pricing/
How these pages are built: methodology and data sources. Data checked 2026-10-16.